Wed. Apr. 30, 2014: Personality Paragraphs

Today, students handed in their personality chart on the characters from the short story "The Little Business Man".
Students then formed gender-diverse groups of four in which the people in the groups normally did not work together. They were then instructed to look at their sheets (they were returned) and, as a group, determine which trait was most evidenced for each character. They were then to pick three characters that have well-supported character traits and create a new chart, jotting down three pieces of evidence for one character trait for each of the three characters. This was due at the end of class. If you were not here, see me and I will explain (the above explanation is pretty vague). Keep in mind that, although I only see you every other day, I am still available to you everyday in the mornings, everyday (except Thursday) at lunch, during RTI, and after school (if you let me know).
In addition, we also examined the assignment handed in today to ensure that the students were meeting expectations regarding layout, titles, organization and expectations.

Mon. Apr. 28, 2014: Questions and New Assignment

Today, we finished marking the answers to the questions for the short story "The Little Business Man."
You were then provided with the following assignment. It is due on Wednesday at the start of class:

Assignment Two:

 Examine all the characters in this story. For each one, come up with the strongest  personality trait. Using a chart, present the evidence that supports your assertion. Here is an example of what is expected using a different text. Note that this one only shows two characters. You will have to show six.

Personality Chart for “Are You My Mother?”

Character	Personality Trait	Evidence
The Crane Driver	Kind	Helps bird into tree
Bird	Naive	Cannot tell what his mother should look like

Wed. Apr. 16, 2014: Assignment Submission/Assembly

Today, you had an assembly regarding picking courses for next year. Prior to this, we started marking the assignment "The Little Business Man". I focused on the following.

 “The Little Business Man”: Answers (value: 48)

Seven marks for complete answers (read each one through and see if the student flipped the question into the statement – even for question five!!!!)

Five marks for having both first and last names in the upper right hand corner

Five marks for having the date in the upper right hand corner.

Five marks for having the class designation in the upper right hand corner (ELA B10 or ELA 10B)

Mon. Apr. 14, 2014: "The Little Businessman"

Today, you handed in your active reading of "The Little Businessman." I then gave you a timed (10 minute) writing activity in which you created a nine to twelve sentence summary of this text. I then gave you questions to answer in relation to this text. These questions were due at the end of class. If you were not here, the questions are in your portfolio.

Thurs. Apr. 10, 2014 "The Little Businessman"

Today, you ere given three handouts: the first, was a general handout about short stories; the second was a handout providing reading strategies for short stories; the third was the short story "The Little Businessman" by Morley Callaghan. You are to read this story using the strategies provided. This is to be completed for Monday, April 14 (before class. I will use the completion as a homework check).

Tues. Apr. 8, 2014: Short Story Introduction

Students viewed a PowerPoint on the short story. It covered what a short story is, what is present in one, characterization, point of view, and the plot line. If a student wasn't here, this information can be attained by borrowing notes from a classmate, meeting with me during RTI or before school to view the PowerPoint, or by doing independent research on line.

Fri. Apr. 3, 2014: Essay Completion and Submission

The essay students have been working on for the last six classes was due at the end of class today. Those who submitted on time will have a "not entered" placed on their progress reports. Those who have not submitted their essays will receive an NHI which does impact their mark until the assignment is submitted.

Tues. Apr. 1, 2014 Writing Class

Today, you worked on your essays which are due at the end of class on Thursday.